Monday, November 06, 2006

Nothing like starting the day with some retail therapy at The Fresh Market right as they open on a Monday. The shelves are stocked with fresh goodies, samples abound, peaceful music lilts through the store and the best part of all - very few shoppers. I return to my desk, refreshed, relaxed and ready to start the work week.

Many thanks for your kind birthday wishes. It has truly been a wondrous celebration. If my friends both real and virtual are any indication, then 37 is going be a VERY good year for me. Plus, Astrologyzone.com predicts that the next year is going to be fab for Scorpios. I'm feeling the astrological love in a major way. Tonight is the finale with dinner for four at a friend's new abode. I'm looking forward to lots of laughs and the warmth of friendship.

As far as your entries in my mini-birthday contest, I'm having a hard time choosing from them because they're all so good. I did buy small prezzie - a pattern at Stitch Diva to make these cuties

cause I have more stash yarn than I know what to do with and I need to get cracking on holiday gifties. I'll be doing a quickie yarn crawl as I trek from one end of the state and back (for work) later this week. With your suggestions in hand as a "shopping list", I'll make some purchases and post the winners on Monday. I can't wait!

I'm almost finished with the double top secret knitting project (and cast on for another one to celebrate) and am very pleased with how this one knit up. I might flash you a peek when I'm finished. I found myself without my double points that I needed to finish a critical piece of it. I was sad, very sad.

I always look forward to four hours of knitting time in the car and really wanted to finish this piece during that time. Suddenly, I recalled reading last week about double knitting in the latest issue of Knitty. I laughed to myself about how pigs would fly before I would try something like that. Well, let me tell you, there must have been some swine soaring over the skies of Virginia last night. Because I never planned to use the technique, I honestly didn't pay close attention to the article. But somehow, I remembered the basics and in no time was double knitting a circular tube without double points with much success. I came, I saw, I DKedOriginally uploaded by indigomuse.

Now for those of you who know how to do this already, you'll laugh at me for not having tried this technique sooner. But for those who haven't, its so simple, so magical, so damned easy, a caveman could do it - LOL! Needless to say, I had to smurk the entire way home.

A slight non-fiber related rant for my fiber kindred in the US: Help me prove the political pundits wrong on Tuesday. Get off your arse and VOTE! I'm not going to tell you who you should vote for nor will you see me spout off about politics in general, but nothing makes me sadder than to hear that the expectation is that 2/3 of Americans will stay home tomorrow. Come on people, women in particular. Our ancestors worked too hard - and yes, many of them died - so that you and I would have the right to vote. Don't squander that beautiful gift. Your vote DOES count!

Ah yes, the vote is SOOOO important, I'll be there bright and early, as I usually stop on my way TO work! My grandmother told stories about voting for the first time that women were allowed. Wow. I have NEVER taken the right for granted, and only missed voting ONCE - I had the flu and 104 temp!

Nice to see those Denises...I'm using mine more and more, too!(((hugs)))

I'm Canadian so there will be no voting for me today but I definitely echo the sentiment.

I remember my great-grandmother doing a lot of double knitting when I was a child. Somehow I always thought she was making one fabric at double thickness instead of two things inside one another though. I recently did something similar to what you did with booties. It was magical. I always feel sort of smart when I do something like that.